Sinhalite (Weight: 3.3 g incl. box) – Place of discovery: Wet Lu mine, Mogok, Burma — Photo: Raimond Spekking · CC BY-SA 4.0
Sinhalite
A magnesium-aluminium borate found in Sri Lanka in 1952 — once mistaken for brown peridot, now a collector's gem.
Intro adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
Sinhalite is an IMA-recognized mineral species in the borate class, with the chemical formula MgAl(BO₄).
It crystallizes in the orthorhombic crystal system (space group Pnma). It is a member of the Olivine structural group.
Key properties: Mohs hardness 6.5–7; specific gravity 3.47–3.5; typically brown or yellow; white streak; Vitreous luster; optically biaxial.
IMA symbol Shl, grandfathered status — known before the IMA’s founding, named in 1952.
A rare accessory mineral formed in boron-rich skarns at the contact of limestones with granite or gneiss.
It is found associated with Spinel, serendibite, ludwigite, warwickite.
The name comes from Sinhala, the Sanskrit name for Ceylon.
Collections: Gemstones, Rare & Remarkable.